• This section is for roleplays only.
    ALL interest checks/recruiting threads must go in the Recruit Here section.

    Please remember to credit artists when using works not your own.

Realistic or Modern Special Ed - Main

LittleMiss

New Member
Hey all! Welcome to Special Ed. Here's all the info you should need. Feel free to message me if you have questions!

In this superhero-esque roleplay, you take your budding little wad of unique personality and zany abilities from age five to fifteen and (if we so wish) beyond.

naruto shippuden GIF


Your story begins when you step into the classroom for your first day of kindergarten. Here you get to know the class pet, start to learn your alphabet–and discover that you are a covert experiment of the government.

You and a handful of other classmates are excused from learning the Itsy-Bitsy Spider in order to follow a strict looking adult called the “special ed teacher” down the hall to a new classroom full of soundproofed walls and assorted toys and equipment.

Here, for an hour and a half every school day, you are taught that you are not like other kids. You are taught that something happened at the hospital where you and the other kids were born and it made you different. You begin to learn how to access a something deep within you. Something that answers a few questions you've had about yourself, but draws out a million more in their place.

You realize, for the first time, that you have superpowers. And that you are most definitely not allowed to bring them anywhere near show-and-tell. Worse, you and the crew soon learn that Special Ed isn't just a fun excuse to get out of class. It's preparation for becoming the nation's most powerful weapons--whether you want to or not. The contract has already been signed by your own parent/guardian.

Parameters

So the idea here is to age up characters to the next grade every three months or so or whenever the storyline calls for it. More on that later.

The style for this roleplay will be a bit like a playground; there is just enough structure to make it fun to explore and play. So as long as your character does not ditch the monkey bars and run off into the proverbial street, I think it should flow pretty well.

It takes place in a fictional coastal city called Newport Heights. The mystery behind their powers is established and will be revealed in time. Meanwhile, the direction of their future and career will depend greatly on their choices.

Superpowers
This isn’t really the roleplay for getting technical on stats (as I really suck at stats). Rather, special abilities are more of an expression of the character so there is a lot of artistic wiggle room.

sailor moon 90s GIF


That said, no overpowered abilities, please. Especially since the characters will develop their powers in stages. There will be plenty of villains and epic fights in which to show off. And some characters may learn faster or slower than others. But this roleplay will be more focused on the characters’ interactions and development than on owning entire evil corporations wholesale.

Characters Age Up
As mentioned, characters will move to the next school grade every three months or so. Before it happens, we’ll make sure we end the previous year on a satisfactory note. I realize everyone’s writing schedule is different and I’ll do my best not to move on until everyone feels ready, so long as they don’t halt the story entirely.

General Pointers
Since all the kids are highly documented and surveyed by the government as part of the same experiment, their lives are tied together (whether they like it or not, which should be half the fun). So try not to separate yourself too much from the crew as it kinda defeats the point of adventuring as a group.

spoilers hug GIF


Also super power training is only an hour and a half of their school day (albeit a very intense one worthy of all sorts of exposition). So feel free to start other shenanigans on the bus, in the classroom, in the cafeteria, after school, at each others’ houses, on field trips, at the movies etc. Have fun exploring your character and how they interact with others and their environment, especially with their newfound secret abilities.
What you’ll need:
  • Character Name
  • Cool Pic (if you want)
  • Appearance
  • Personality
  • Special Ability
  • Ability Kickback (negative side effect on your character for using their powers. Can be physical, mental, emotional, etc. These can fade as they improve their skills. Or also become more complex as they take their skills to new lengths)
  • Family Situation/Background (anything you want us to know upfront)
  • And of course anything other info you want to add.

For anyone who wants to use the blank character sheet, there are tabs for each grade as an option for if you want to update your picture and other info as your character ages.

We may need to add in more categories to each year as the story progresses, but here’s the basic format:

Blank Character Sheet

Post your character here
NPCs
As long as the main characters remain the main characters, I’m flexible with how you use NPCs. Just be sure to specify if an NPC can be used by anyone or is someone important to your story that you would like ownership of. There is room to do this in the document.

**Note: if you want additional tabs for additional years that the NPC is in the story, just copy and paste from what is available in the document, making sure that the entire thing ends with [/Tabs]. Some NPCs might not enter until later on or may not stay in the story very long which is why I've only created one tab.

Blank NPC Sheet

Post NPCs here
Development Stages (for you to have fun and be creative with! How would your character reach each one? Or would they reach it at all?)

Universal
Applies to everyone and starts in kindergarten.
  • Activation (learning how to access abilities. They’re currently dormant.)
  • Basic Control (learning how to not blow things up, essentially. Because once powers are activated, they are activated.)
  • Coping With Kickback (discovering the unexpected side effects of abilities and how to work around them)
  • Advanced Control (learning not only how to bridle powers, but how to utilize them)

Custom
More unique to the character and starts in first grade.
  • Increasing one’s knowledge about their unique ability
  • Discovering new routes and applications
  • Strengthening their control
  • Discovering new, possibly more lasting side effects
  • Maybe developing needed gear to improve performance

I will publish more stages once the pacing of the story is more established. For example, at one point, they’ll probably get personal instructors. And future ideas are welcome! In any case, the real baddies start to show up in second grade, so make sure you’re prepared!

Without further ado, let's get adventuring!
 
The empty school building was dark when Nichole Sharpe unlocked the door to her new classroom. A quick flick of the light switch revealed a normal enough looking space. There were shelves of supplies and a place for cubbies with the student’s respective names. The school had provided a few colorful tables with chairs and a corner of beanbags. The entire place was wallpapered with whiteboards, maps, and animal posters. Even the teacher’s desk looked quaintly cluttered.

She was impressed to see that none of the summer’s renovations and reinforcements were visible and that her agency’s own supplies had already been delivered. The space was small, but if they had access to the gym then it would work.

It would have to work. Not for the first time, she wished they had let her cut to the chase and take the kids straight to the training facilities instead of having to trail around through all their school. Try as the state may, there was no way to give the children a normal childhood. Not really. Once they discovered the truth about themselves, there would be no return to the careless ignorance that their peers enjoyed.

But she would go along for now with their gummy snack stimulants and million-dollar tech disguised in colorful plastic. She would wear the itchy cardigans and endure the teacher lounge conversation. She would even put up with her sorry excuse of an assistant if it meant that she could take charge of the kids.

If it meant that she could fix this.
 
Last edited:
Egan stared out of the car window at the massive expanse of playground equipment and rambunctious kids making the most of their morning recess. He felt such a bubbly mix of excitement and fear that it reminded him of waiting in line at the carnival for the swing ride.

“Have fun, yeah?” Liam gave him a pat on the shoulder. Egan nodded, gaze still fixed on this new world, particularly on a kid hanging upside down from the monkey bars. He wondered why someone would want to do that. Then he wondered how he could learn to do it.

“Honey, you have absolutely nothing to worry about,” his mom smiled at him from the rearview mirror. “You’re gonna rock it!”

He wouldn’t feel so worried if she didn’t look so worried. But he shrugged it off for now. At least she was feeling happy today. With promises to tell them all about his day, Egan at long last got out of the car. Then, adjusting his new dinosaur backpack, immediately began scoping the area, deciding where he should go first. Because if Liam could go to school everyday, then so could he. Like his brother had told him the night before, He just needed to find a friend and everything would feel better.

“Bye, Sweetie!” His mom called out before rolling the window back up and driving off. With only one longing glance toward his mom’s departing car, he hugged his hoodie closer around him and stepped past the cheery duty teacher at the gate and out into the uncharted world.
 
Stormi woke up to her alarm clock ringing, waking her up. She turned it off and stayed quiet for a bit - listening if someone was there. The apartment, she lived in only greeted her with silence, so it was to assume that her mother was either asleep or working. She got up, chose what she was going to wear for the day and walked outside of her room and into the kitchen. Her backpack was ready at the door and a sandwitch lay on the table, with a note next to it. Having already learned how to read ot of her own initiative, Stormi walked over and read the note. It was from her mother, telling her she was really sorry that she couldn't be here for her today, that there was a first day of school surprise for her in her backpack, which she'd get to open once she was at school and how to get to the school and telling her, her mother had told the busdriver about her and that she was supposed to sit right at the front.

She put the note down and ate her breakfast her mother had prepared for her and put the dishes in the sink after she was done. Then she walked back to the bathroom to brush her teeth before walking to the entrance, putting on a light jacket and her backpack and closed the door behind her. Putting her apartment key around her neck, she walked down towards the entrance and outside, walking down the sidewalk to the nearby bus station, her mother and her had walked hundreds of times during the summer. She only had to wait a little bit until the bus arrived and she got on right at the front, with a slight nod of the driver and sat down in a seat right in the front, as her mother had told her. Around 20 minutes later, the driver told her that she was here now and as soon as the bus had left, she saw the school.

A lot of kids were already there, though she didn't really care about them too much. She was definitely going to be forced to get to know them better anyways from what she had heard from her mother. She looked to both sides of the road, before deeming it safe enough to cross, since there weren't any cars coming. She made her way towards the door and walked in.
 
MARIA OCHIDA
OOTD
"Miss Maria? It's time to wake up." The soft voice of Lina, the family maid filled the bedroom of the young girl. With a soft sigh, the girl woke up to trudge alongside the worker. She'd never been good at waking up. She was a morning person, but the struggle of getting up in the first place was still there. After the usual morning routine of being bathed by Lina, insisting on dressing herself, and getting seated into the spacious living room while adults either figured out what to do with her or she was given further instruction. Breakfast was typically optional, and despite the gurgles of her tummy the table wasn't set so she didn't count on today being one of those days. She instead decided to prop her tiny legs onto the couch so she could take a little nap. She had a feeling she wouldn't get much sleep for the rest of the day.

Eventually, Lina reentered the living room with Niall, their personal driver. "Here you go. Your mum bought it for your big day," Lina informed her, handing over a black jacket with a fur trimmed collar With a grin, she shrugged the jacket on, following Niall outside of the house. Mother had bought her a gift! She did care. She didn't always talk, but she must care. The excitement of that revelation led her to yammer on to Niall for the rest of the 30 minute drive.

After being dropped off, she scanned the building for any potential new friends. Entering the door, she spotted an anxious looking boy huddled in his hoodie. "You okay?" She piped up, skipping over with a grin on her face. "I like your jacket."

LittleMiss LittleMiss
 
"Earl its time to get up" A familiar voice called out to him. He opened his eyes and stared at his father who's gaze was fixated on him.

"Oh dad yeah I'll be *yawn* right there just give me a minute" Earl said. His dad stared at him for a moment before heading out the door.

As soon as his Dad's footsteps sound disappeared Earl's eyes closed as he fell asleep with a smile on his face.

"Well I guessed this would be the case" his Dad's voice caught him off guard making him sit upright and open his eyes.

"You didn't go downstairs?" Earl asked slightly confused

"No I just waited outside, I already had a hunch that you were going back to sleep. But now since you seem wide awake so go freshen up in the washroom and join us for breakfast" he said as he walked out.

Earl stretched his arms and looked to the bed longingly one last time before dressing up and heading to the washroom. After freshening up he headed downstairs where his breakfast awaited him. He sat on the dining table and had his scrambled eggs on toast while his little sister watched tv and his father was on his phone. As soon as Earl was done with his breakfast they got seated in their car and headed on towards their destination.

After dropping off his sister at the daycare they finally reached the kindergarten.

"Take care Earl I'll come by later to pick you up" his Dad said as he drove away.

Taking a look around the place seemed fun. A number of kids his age were present but he didn't want to stand outside and talk. So he entered the door and looked around for any sign of conversation. From what he noticed most of the students were currently in pairs so he didn't want to barge in just yet... well except for the girl a few steps from him who seemed to have a cold gaze.

'Well I got to start somewhere' he thought as he approached her.

"Hey I'm Earl, just thought I'd introduce myself since it's the first day. How about you what's your name?" he asked.

Hiuly of Starmoon Hiuly of Starmoon
 
Egan had been so focused on working out some of the games the other kids were playing that, at first, he didn't realize the girl had been talking to him. Even at his own house, he didn't feel like he was the one people generally struck up conversations with so her frankness surprised him.

"Thanks," he smiled, somewhat sheepishly. "Momma says its too big, but I still think its cool. Your jacket is cool too!"

It looked new. And really warm. He held out his hand, which was still covered by his oversized sleeve. "I'm Egan. What's your name?"

Whoever she was, he liked her smile. It made her seem both friendly and fearless, like she already knew what this kindergarten stuff was all about.

poiyuups poiyuups
 
MARIA OCHIDA
OOTD
"Hello? Hello?" Her brows furrowed, tilting her head slightly to the side as the boy seemingly failed to acknowledge her, though she perked up instantly once she recieved affirmation that he had indeed heard her. "Don't mention it! It's just big enough. The prety lady on the building outside was wearing a big jacket too, you look like her. Thank you! Mum bought it for today, it feels like a blanket." She responded, her voice speeding up as she spoke in one breath, finally letting out a giggle after she'd finished her mini-monoluge. Glancing down at his hand for a second, she remembered what she was meant to do and with a grin, happily shook his hand. "Maria! Nice to meet you Egan." The boy looked nervous, unsure of himself. But he liked her jacket so she had resolved that they would be friends now. "I like your glasses too," she commented happily, taking her own off, to note the similarity. Well, note them as much as she could with fuzzy vision

LittleMiss LittleMiss
 
Stormi had been standing to one side of the room, examining her surroundings and seeing if there was something she could do, like reading a book. She liked books, since on one hand, they could tell you stories of places near and far, or it could teach you something about a specific topic. And for her the best thing: If you‘re reading a book, the others usually leave you alone, which meant she didn‘t need to talk to anyone.

While still thinking about books, she saw a boy approach and looking around the room, she realized, she was the only one not in a group or talking to someone. That was definitely the reason as to why he walked over to her. When he was done introducing himself, she looked at him, taking in everything from his hair to his toes, before turning and walking away, sill not having said a word.

She walked over to some shelves, in hopes of finding a book that she could read the entire day. Scanning the shelf, she noticed there weren‘t any real books, only those really easy ones, with a lot of pictures and big letters and only two to three sentences per page. She guessed it was better than nothing though, so with a frustrated sigh, she grabbed one of them, sat down crosslegged and started reading it.

Pestilence Pestilence
 
Earl smiled as the girl looked him over and didn't say anything. As he began to try to make conversation he noticed that the girl had already turned her back to him and had headed to one of the shelves scanning for books. 'Guess she isn't a fan of talking? Then again maybe she's just shy, at the least I didn't notice any feeling of animosity' he thought.

He looked around again finding her sitting down and reading a book and so decided it would be wise to not interrupt her and instead spend his time getting to know the others. Looking around he noticed a boy and a girl shaking hands. The two of them seemed friendly enough from what he could see and hear so he decided to go on over and join them.

"Hey room for one more? Seems like you guys were having a fun conversation" He said with a smile to greet them

LittleMiss LittleMiss poiyuups poiyuups
 
Ollie Thorpe

Back home in Florida, Ollie and his grandmother had made themselves a little tradition of making the fifteen (or so) minute walk to his preschool together. It never quite felt like fifteen-minutes to the dark-haired boy with his grandmother beside him and once the excitement that had come with school, and friends, and even learning, had started accompanying his thoughts, it made the time seem lessened even more. Here in Newport though, far from his previous preschool and those friends he'd bid tearful good-bye's too, there was only a 10-minute walk to the school and back. It was a fast, if not nearly as scenic, commute which should've been nice. But an uncharacteristically nervous Ollie found himself dreading every step forward. If not for his grandmother's hand anchoring him to the route, he was almost certain he would've dashed back home, back to the comfort of his race-car bed and plush comforter.

As they neared the cross-walk, the school looming ever-nearer in the distance, Ollie found himself clutching his grandmother's hand all the more tighter, something like anxiety itching at his nerves.

"Nana, maybe we could skip the first day? Get ice cream instead, and tell mom and dad we went?" he suggested, attempting to ground them for an extra couple of seconds to miss the light (overestimating his own strength) and instead being pulled forward as the woman easily steered him the first couple of steps with her across the intersection.

"How about we get ice cream after you go to school," his grandmother countered, "and have a really good day, make lots of friends..." she trailed off, something amused twitching at the corners of her lips as something in her words caused a still stubbornly reluctant-- if his guarded expression was anything to go off of --Ollie to speed up a little more.

"Well.." Ollie still really didn't want to go all that much, but the promise of ice cream-- a treat he rarely got as his mother was strict about what sweets were to be allowed in the house --seemed to good to pass up. "I guess we can discuss flavors when I get back. And whether we're going to go with a pint or a... a... quarter-full-"

"-- a quart of ice cream, Ollie?" his grandmother interrupted, absently-mindedly thrusting a hand through the motions of a wave towards a car that paused to allow them to cross the car-crowded drop-off lane. "how about half a cup? You can't even finish a pint yet and yet you're trying to negotiate for a quart."

"A pint is two cups," Ollie recited to himself distractedly, before re-entering the conversation with vigor. "I can so finish two cups! I can prove it!"

"Sure you can," his grandmother allowed, slowing their steps to a pause as they reached the double-doors marking the inside of Ollie's kindergarten. "you can argue this point more later today, okay?"

Letting his eyes flit up to double-doors and his grandmother back, Ollie at once felt the nerves again. But it was too late to try to convince nana to turn around now."Okay."

Releasing the older woman's hand, Ollie stepped through the doors forcing his eyes to remain centered towards the front. He wouldn't look back, couldn't look back, because if he did, he wasn't certain he'd stay in this new place. Following a few steps behind a boy with white hair who seemed to know where he was going, Ollie found what appeared to be his classroom easily enough. Most the children were clumped up in groups, standing and getting to know one another. There would be time for that later, Ollie decided, instead making his way towards a couple of bean-bags strewn in a corner. As he neared the desired bean bags, an unfamiliar boy with hair even darker than his and an easy smile once he perceived Ollie's brown gaze perched himself atop one of them. Nearby, a girl was settling herself cross-legged next to the shelves of books, head buried in one of them.

Though initially not in the most social of moods, a bit more of Ollie's nerves fell away at the boy's expression, at his words. "I wish we could have class on these bean-bags," the boy said, leaning back to push his weight more into his chosen one with a satisfied sigh. "desks are cool and all, but bean-bags would make everything cooler, I think."

"I don't know about that," Ollie put forward, taking a seat to the guys left and flicking the briefest of glances towards the cross-legged girl. "I feel like I would go to sleep in class if we sat on these. They're way, way too comfortable."

The other boy let out a little chuckle before volunteering his name. "I'm Kennedy Sparks. Like the president."

"Cool name. I'm Ollie! Or really, Olivier Thorpe. But everyone just calls me Ollie." he pushed forward a hand to shake Kennedy's.
 
Egan's eyes widened when the other kid approached them. Was it even possible to make two new friends in one day?

"Hi!" he greeted. "We were just talking about glasses. Because we both wear them. Did you know 25% of the whole pop-a-lation wears them? That's what the lady at the eye doctor place told me. I think she was trying to make me feel better that I had to wear them, but she didn't need to. I think they're kind of awesome. Except when they break and my mom gets really mad then--" realizing he was rambling, Egan sheepishly ended with. "Then they aren't...so awesome."

His face reddened a little with embarrassment. But he had never had people slow down enough to really listen to him before. It made him feel all bubbly and clumsy, like one of those soda pops that just fizzes all over the place once someone finally opens it.

"Anyway, I'm Egan. And this is Maria. Her mom bought her a new jacket!

This kid seemed really cool too, the way he'd casually sauntered over. He hadn't even seemed upset that the one girl didn't want to talk to him. Maybe if Egan hung around these two enough, some of their natural know-how would rub off on him.

poiyuups poiyuups Pestilence Pestilence
 
MARIA OCHIDA
OOTD

Mariah grinned, letting go of his hand to wave at the other child. Granted he was only two steps away but still, she felt it appropriate to do so.
"Hey!" She replied after Egan, placing her glasses back on her face. "What's a pop-a-lation? And how many people is 25%? But they're really awesome, Dad says that the smartest people wear glasses. But sometimes I'm stupid, but I only got the glasses a month ago so maybe they make you smarter over time. What about you? Do you need glasses?" She questioned, turning to the new boy. "They're cool, even if sometimes they make Egan's mom mad." She nodded wildly, causing her glasses to nearly tip off her face, though her hands caught them in the nick of time. "Why does your mom get mad anyway? Can't she just buy more?" She pondered. "And what's your name?" She asked him while fiddling with the jacket in question. The boy seemed cool, and though she didn't know him very well, was just another new friend. Two new friends in the span of a few minutes, was definitely the best case scenario. Maybe they could even hangout after school, if Mama and Papa approved! Granted they probably wouldn't, given how often they fought with her siblings about bringing people to the house, but still.

LittleMiss LittleMiss Pestilence Pestilence
 
His new conversation partners spoke quickly but he managed to catch on to what they were saying. As he had guessed they seemed pretty open to talking as the conversation just seemed to naturally flow.

"Yeah the info about glasses sounds interesting I never knew that" he said replying to the boy then turning to the girl

"Me need glasses? I don't think I need them right now. Though I don't think I'd have a problem with wearing them if it made me appear smart" I said to the girl

After listening for a bit more he learnt their names the boy was Egan and the girl was Maria.

"I'm Earl nice to meet the two of you" he said as he extended his hand for a handshake to the two of them, first to Egan then to Maria.

"So you guys excited for the first day, I wonder what we'll be doing" he said

The two of them seemed nice enough if he could spend his time with them well kindergarten would be much more fun than just laying in bed and oversleeping.

LittleMiss LittleMiss poiyuups poiyuups
 
First day of the school year and already Ms. Easton was running late! Of course the one time she actually had a chance to bring up some concerns with the principal would be right before the bell.

Already, she could hear the hubbub from her classroom growing and already could sense the unease of her aide. Without trying to look too hurried, she made it the rest of the way down the hall. Then stepped through the door and into the chaos--though, she was impressed to see, it was rather well-behaved chaos.

"Okay, class!"

Most of them stopped and turned. "I think it's high time for us to get started, what do you think?"

"Are you the teacher?" one asked.

"You're late!" another huffed.

"Yes, I am the teacher. And no, I'm not late," she smiled. "I was just...giving you all a chance to make new friends. Now. Each desk has someone's name on it. Do you think you can find yours?"

She and the aide spent the next little while helping the students find their places and organize their supplies. She went through the standard introduction and classroom tour. But all the while, her conversation with the principal kept replaying in her head.

"They want five of my students," she'd told him. "For almost two hours. That's almost half the day for morning kindergarten. Do you know how behind they'll be?"

"The school board assures me there is a program in place to keep them up to speed," he shrugged, nodding and waving to the students as they entered.

She'd frowned. That seemed to be the only thing the board had assured anyone of. "But why? I completely understand the need for extra programs to help struggling kids. I attended on myself growing up. But I've met with their parents. There's nothing unusual. They seem right on track."

He had only shrugged again. "Believe it or not, Jayla, the state doesn't answer to me. Your guess is as good as mine. Though if anything, they made it sound like the kids were more ahead then behind, so I wouldn't be too worried. And anyway, if you want the real reason behind it all, it's because the board was real excited about the grant the state offered. You should be too. It'll give you a well-earned bonus."

Jayla fumed. "I don't need a bonus. I need to know that my kids are going to make to the first grade. All of them!"

He only smiled. He knew as well as she that everyone in district needed a bonus, down to the janitors, but he didn't press the issue. "They will, Jayla. I'll make sure of it."

"And I don't mean by--"

"Now what kind of school would we be if we promoted cheating?" He said, already having guessed her thoughts. Then, in a quieter tone, he added: "I'm not a hundred-percent sold on this whole thing either but until we actually have something tangible to bring to the board there's not a whole lot we can do. For now, just keep me in the loop. Let me know if they start falling behind or if their behavior seems affected."

"But...Sorry, Sir, but if you're also concerned, can't you just go into the new classroom yourself and supervise?"

He waved to another faculty member whose arms were full of late-coming supplies but waited for the man to turn the corner before responding.

"Between you and me? No, I can't. I am not allowed."
 
Last edited:
Nichole’s sharp eye surveyed the battleground.

Already she could spot the conquerors. Those who ousted the others by the sheer volume of their voices, demanding the teacher pay the ransom price of attention if they ever wanted peace to return to the land. Then there were the diplomats, with their little hands held politely in the air like so many eager truce banners. She even spotted a few cutthroats, using the cover of the day’s discussion on months of the year to snatch a few items from their comrades backpacks or desks.

But she wasn’t here for any of them. Impressive as a room full of tyrannical little tykes was, she was here to collect a set of much more formidable weaponry.

From her place in the doorway, Nichole gently cleared her throat.

The young Ms. Easton whirled around, turning from her calendar cutouts and bringing the entire classroom’s gaze with her

“Oh, Mrs. Sharpe! I’m so sorry, I didn’t see you.” Then, to her students, “Class, this is Mrs. Sharpe. She’s a lovely lady that helps the school. She teaches a super special class for anyone who needs a little extra help with their homework.”

Nichole caught the hidden sarcasm, but she respected it. She’d have serious questions about their instructor if the woman didn’t at least have some suspicions.

“Who do you need, Mrs. Sharpe?”

She immediately rattled off the five names of her students without so much as a clipboard. They reacted of course. Some timid or surprised, others confused or even a little defiant. And one by one, she began to piece together the possible future safety of the nation.

“Okay,” Ms. Easton gave them an encouraging smile. “Go ahead and follow Mrs. Sharpe. I bet she has some really fun stuff for you guys to do! Be sure to tell us all about it when–”

A hard look from Nichole stopped her short.

“Well, you’ll see. Just have fun!”

The students silently gathered around her and, with a nod of acknowledgement, she began to lead them away from the “thirty-days-hath-September” chants of their classmates and down the hall.

To their credit, they were smart enough to stay quiet.

“Now.” She said once they'd arrived, stopping at the door and turning to face her new unit. “As your teacher said, this can be fun. But only if you follow the rules. Do you understand? I will not have anyone misbehaving.”

She was answered with a less than encouraging display of widened eyes and confused nods.

They would work on it. With another nod, she opened the door and motioned for them to enter. The obediently shuffled past her.

The room, which had been refurbished and reinforced over the summer, looked normal enough on the surface. There were shelves of supplies and a place for cubbies with the student’s respective names. The school had provided a few colorful tables with chairs and a corner of beanbags. The entire place was wallpapered with whiteboards, maps, and animal posters. Even the teacher’s desk looked quaintly cluttered.

And then, behind the desk, there was Chris. Sitting back in the swivel chair, with his sneakers resting on the keyboard. A warm, tangy sort smell hung in the air and she suddenly realized that some of the clutter was wrappers from his lunch which, judging by the blotch on his chest, had been his favorite barbeque. Nichole drew in a long, deep breath.

“Hey, what’s up guys?” His face broke into a grin at the student’s entrance and he swung his legs back down. “Name’s Mr. Chris.”

He stood and came over to greet them. “You guys are lucky. You’re the only kids in the whole school who get out of class today. And you won’t even get in trouble for it!”

Nichole immediately regained control of the situation by standing at the front of the classroom.

“Yes, welcome to our class. But I’m afraid your teacher was wrong about one thing. You are not here because you need help with schoolwork. You are here for something much more important. Please,” she motioned toward the plush rug in front of her. “Be seated.”

The students, still in a bewildered sort of silence, obeyed.

“Because of events that we won’t get into today, you are different from other children,” she began. “You have gifts that they can only imagine having. Gifts which you might compare to your favorite superhero. You might not believe me, but you will see soon enough. Because that’s what this whole class is about. To help you learn about and use your gifts.”

“What you must understand is that they are not for fun. They can be incredibly dangerous to yourself and to your classmates. So follow the classroom rules to the letter and I can promise that, most likely, you will not end up in the hospital. Furthermore–”

Chris shook his head with a chuckle before making his way over. “Hey babe. Ill-chay on the eath-day stuff, alright? They’re only five.”

“Ritter,” she warned. Already, she had ticked off five things she could have him fired for and he had just added a sixth. If only the agency didn’t insist on having him on this project.

Still laughing, he stepped in front of her and snagged a chair. He spun it around then sunk down in it backwards. “Don’t worry too much about her.” Then, whispering from behind his hand. “I think she had a bowl of Grumpies for breakfast this morning.”

The reactions to his comedy were mixed, but, unfortunately for all of them, he was not one to be deterred. “Let’s see if I can remember your names. Kid rocking the cool hair, you’re Earl, right? And girl who looks like she wants to murder me in my sleep, you’re…Stormi! Yeah. Epic name, by the way. And then you must be Oliver. I really need to know the story behind your battle scar, my guy. Little man over there is Egan. And then you with the long hair and glasses…Gah, I remember this one.” He pressed his palm to his forehead in exaggerated thinking before, with sudden epiphany, shouted, “Maria! That’s right. Real pretty name. Super cool.”

Then, before they could offer any comment: “Hey! Did you guys know? In this class, you get special snacks!”

He made an exaggerated stretch back toward the desk and grabbed a box of what, for all intents and purposes, looked like a box of packaged cheese crackers.

Nichole patiently watched him play all sorts of silly games handing them out and hoped that there was enough flavor junk jam packed into the things to hide the real taste. It was akin to what she imagined battery-juice might taste like from what she had experienced in the early development stages.

“Now these are really special snacks. You might not believe me, but they help you do some really awesome tricks. Kind of like when you buy new shoes, but even better. That’s why, before we really start class, we’re gonna go get the wiggles out.”

By which he meant they would herd the children to the gym and let them run loose with jump ropes and balls and the like to see–with the temporary stimulants–what special abilities showed up. Because though they had traced the same condition through all of the students, they had uncovered little as to how it would manifest in each of them.

And though she was not a fan of her partner's rushed yet lackadaisical approach, she too was eager to find out just what they would be dealing with.

As Chris jabbered on to the poor things who were just trying to finish their snack, Nichole was already gearing up to send footage and to take notes. This was the part of the job where they had insisted she stay on the project.
 
Last edited:
Earl looked at the new room the five of them had been taken to, it was strange that they had been separated from their class but if this thing ended up being fun it would be worth it. Though that seemed unlikely with the gaze of the woman that had brought them who seemed to be keenly intent on observing them. The person who called himself 'Chris' seemed to be friendly enough, if he had any questions he decided to bring it to him.

After Earl finished up his snack he turned to Chris and spoke, "So Mr.Chris what are we supposed to do after this? You've explained some things but not in a way I could understand would you mind going into more detail"
 
Stormi gathered around the teacher just like the other students. Though she had known from the moment of the teacher claiming her needing help with homework that something was weird in all of this. First of all, this was Kindergarten. Most of them couldn‘t even read yet and second, it was the first day. In all her tv-research, she knew there was no homework on the first day. Needless to say she got even more suspicious when 4 others and her were lead into another room.

Where she met ‘Chris‘. She had just met him and he already gave her a headache. The guy was way to cheery and optimistic, or trying too hard to be liked by them. She narrowed her eyes when he mentioned her name and shot him an icy glare. And if she hadn‘t been suspicious of everything before, the moment Chris got crackers out, definitely would have been the moment she thought was weird and then she was practically shipped off to the gym, with the cracker in her hand.

The others had already ate theirs, though Stormi was hesitant. Instead, she started studying it, while also thinking about what the teachers had said. They had talked about powers, but didn‘t mention any specifically, which could only mean they had no idea what kind of powers they had. Now everything started to make sense. Them getting taken out of class and being constantly supervised by “strict“ over there with her clipboard and what not and the crackers they were supposed to eat definitely had to do something with them finding out about what powers they had. Probably also why they were brought to the gym, so they had the space to find out what they had. Stormi threw the cracker away as it was pretty useless in her case and walked over to the grown ups, walking in on the conversation between Earl and Chris.

„Simple“, she started answering Earl‘s question. „We‘re their guinea pigs and they‘re currently trying to find out what powers we have, which should show themselves because of the cracker you ate before. So, I guess just run around and play for a bit and see what happens“. She turned towards the woman. „Mine are ice or freezing things. It‘s blatantly obvious when every liquid you touch freezes. Can I go now?“, she asked. Stormi hoped she could leave, since she‘d search for the library, to find a better book than the one in the classroom and she really didn‘t want to be around the others, which were getting louder by the second.
 
Chris and Nichole just stared at each other. Then back down at Stormi.

One of the child's powers had already manifested? But that should have been impossible. Clearly, either the girl or her mother were keeping things well under wraps. And it was a good thing to. The last thing they needed right now was any sort of local media or press getting an early start.

But if the girl had been wanting class to end there, she would be disappointed, as her declaration of being able to freeze things only made her classmates absolutely ecstatic with questions and curiosity. Chris made an attempt at calming them all down, but it wasn't until Nichole blew her whistle that they went quiet.

"Your classmate is correct. Though you'll soon find that "guinea pig" is not entirely accurate, but more on that later. Like her, you all have powers. And we are here in this gym so that each of you can learn what yours are. Your snack should have activated your abilities so I expect--"

Suddenly the lights buzzed and flickered until finally shutting off, causing a few startled yelps.

Nichole drew in a long breath.

"Whoever that was, will you please turn them back on?"

Some giggles and more wild chatter ensued before, finally, with more flickering, the lights returned to reveal Egan, standing in the middle, staring up at the ceiling. The lights flickered once then twice more and a slow grin spread across his face.

"Hey," Chris tapped her on the shoulder, his phone to his ear. "Kid might have a point. I think we should wrap it up for today."

"Ritter, it's been ten minutes. We haven't even--" But his expression--dead serious for once--stopped her and she listened for the faint the voice on the other end of his phone.

"...too close for comfort. Just drones, so faculty hasn't noticed. But you need to get them out now. Back to their classrooms."

"On it, sir."

Nichole rolled her eyes and blew out a breath of frustration. So those imbeciles were already on the case.

"I told you, Sharpe," Chris pocketed his phone. "Once you call dibs on the world's coolest toys, everyone's going to want an invite to the party."

He turned to the kids to pass along the instructions--and to tell Egan to stop messing with the lights--but the repeated sound of smashed glass interrupted him. Immediately his and Nichole's phone alerts went off, warning them of what they could already see: streams of spy drones flooding into the gym through the windows.

Nichole cursed under her breath and began hurriedly gathering the children. Day one and they might already have to relocate. She knew this was a terrible idea.

One of the drones fired at Chris who dodged. "Uhh..." he stammered. "Pop quiz: don't die."

"Ill-chay on the eath-day," she mocked, pulling out her gun and blasting one of the drones out of the air before it could land in Maria's hair. "Come on kids. Back to the special ed classroom. It's the safest place on campus."
 
Thorne woke up to the light shining through the living room window, he squinted annoyed as he blinked trying to recall how it had gotten so bright outside already.
his muddled thoughts tried to answer the question before his gaze fell on his round plush frog Henry and an old ratty backpack next to him.
"hmm" he hummed softly eyeing it with a dumb smile before frowning
"I have to go to shool." he giggled at his own stupid mispronunciation of the word. crawling to his feet he smiled brightly as he quickly ran over to a worn cardboard box next to his bed housing his too small jacket and a single pair of torn jeans. he pulled the jeans on with some difficulty forgoing buttoning and zipping them after three failed attempts.
he pulled the jacket on not even bothering to try and zip it up. his eyes wondered around the room looking for his sandles. his face twisted in concentration before he spotted them under the table. he immediately fell to his knees and crawled to them pulling them on the wrong feet.
Thorne flashed a bright smile of triumph once he scrambled back to his feet, grabbing his old bag and taking off out the apartment to walk to school, not realizing he was already late by at least a whole hour......
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top